The Lost Bible
Did you ever lose something? Perhaps a ring or your wallet? The aggravation that you did not take care of the item bothers you, and you might have to do a lot of things if you lose something like your wallet. You would need to cancel your credit cards and get yourself a new license. Sometimes, we realize that we lost something, and we may never get it back. This has been a problem for many years for many people. Sometimes you might lose power, and your work on the computer is lost, and you have to do it over again. Just imagine that if you had saved your work, it would still be there. But we really do not consider doing this that often. Sometimes people have lost something and do not even know it. They might need something, and search all over, and not find it. When that happens, they usually just replace it. But some things cannot be replaced.
There was a time in the history of the Jews that they had lost the book of Moses. This was the Law that they had been avoiding for many years. We read about finding this book in 2 Chronicles 34:14-33. As we read the story, the King has it read aloud, and everyone who heard it was sorrowful because they realized that they had failed in serving their God properly.
The King ordered the people to consecrate themselves and come before the God of heaven and make restitution for their disobedience. The people did serve God until the King died, and the spiritual leadership was gone.
Sadly, there is a situation in our world today in which the Bible is lost. It is lost because people have chosen to ignore it. It is lost because it has been removed from our schools and courthouses. It is lost because many want it removed from our society. It is even lost sitting on the coffee table right in front of you. When you choose to ignore God's word, it is lost to you. When you do not live as it dictates to us, the Bible is lost to you.
The Bible is lost in many homes. Many parents fail to teach their children about God and serving the creator of this universe. Thankfully there are still a few parents that do this, but they are in a minority. The duty imposed upon parents by God is to bring their children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Sadly many children never hear about God in the home. Parents sometimes expect the church to teach their children about God, and send them off to Sunday school.
The Bible is lost in many churches. Often, the will of the people dictates to the leadership that they do not like the language of the Bible. It is not really the language, but what is said and taught from the Bible that is unpleasant to them. Many churches choose to ignore the Bible as a source of authority. They have replaced it with creed books and human doctrines which will not save the souls of their adherents.
The Bible is lost in many pulpits of the land. We are not just talking about those churches where they have rejected Bible authority; but we have to include many pulpits in the church of our Lord. Many lessons preached are nothing more than anecdotes and fish stories. Many churches want a preacher that will entertain them with witty stories and quotes. There are far too many sermons that do not even ask the hearers to open their bibles and read along with them. Some sermons even avoid the word "sin".
Many sermons are void of the word of God. This is sad because the Bible has the words of eternal life in it.
The Bible is lost in the lives of the members. There are members that do not live as God desires. They live in the stubbornness of their own hearts. They do what they want to do, and seldom consider their actions in light of God's word. Most of the world could not tell if they are a Christian by their behavior. I am sure we all have met people that told us they were a Christian, and we were shocked because there was no evidence to support such a claim.
Back to our story of Josiah, we are told that when he finally heard the Law read, he tore his clothes in shame. These were the chosen people of God, and they had not served God properly in many generations. Not only did Josiah display his shame, he commanded the priests and leaders of the people to share the word of God. For a time the people got their act together and served the God of heaven properly. Had they continued serving God, God would have continued to bless them. But, alas, they returned to their stubborn wicked ways and once again lost the inheritance promised to them.
Today, we need to serve God in order to receive the blessings He promises. So find your Bible, study it, and hold on to it for the sake of your soul.
By Carey Scott

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